Fender accessory



Sept 13, 1938- J HALTENBERGER FENDER AC GES SORY 2 Sheets-Shee: 1'

Original Filed Dec. 22

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.sept 13, 1938- J. HALTENBERGER Re. 20,857..e

y FENDER ACCESSORY Original Filed Deo. 22, -1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gmc/who@ -IULES HHLTENERGER,

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PATENT- o1-Fics ll'liNDii-'Bu ACCESSORY Jules Haitenberger, Ann Arbor, Mich. Original No. 2,048,862, dated July 28, 1938, Serial No. 703,562, December 22, 1933. Ailvlication o for reissue IMay 21, 19,38. Serial No. 209,388

:noy oisans (ci. :aso-153) This invention relates to an automobile construction, andpa'rticularly to an accessory for enclosing the wheel-exposing opening oi' a fender.

It is the object oi my invention to improve the 5 stream lines and decrease the wind resistance of an automobile, to improve the appearance of the automobile, and to brace the depending edges of a wheel-fender, especially a deep-skirted fender.

It is a further object oi my invention to provide i'or mounting an accessory on a i'ender in a manner which will permit ready and simple removal and replacement, which will avoid the occurrence oi' rattles or other noises and which will cooperate with the fender parts to strengthen and brace them.

Itis a further object oi my invention to provide a closure for a fender wheel-exposing opening which when in place will prevent the removal oi the wheel or its tire, and which may be locked in place, so as to prevent unauthorized removal of the wheel or tire.

In the construction of wheel fenders i'or automobiles, it is necessary to leave an opening which will expose the wheel and permit access to it for the purposes oi' repair and changing of tires. In the present day automobile, of so called streamline design, the laterally extending portions of the fenders are spaced considerable distances from the wheels, and the fender skirts extend toward the wheel axes to leave wheel exposing openings only slightly larger than the wheels. It is to these deep-skirted fenders that my invention is especially applicable, for in them the fenderedges which define thewheel-exposing opening are relatively unsupported by the inherent fender design. f

In accomplishing the objects of my invention, I provide a shield or closure which will ll the wheel-exposing opening of fender and make the outside surfaces of the fender substantially continuous. This closure has at its edges means which cooperate with the fender edges to avoid relative movement therebetween.

The closure or shield is desirably secured in place by some devic'which will permit ready re- 55 edges on both sides, the closure may be held in place by some means which merely prevents it frommoving downwardly. Preferably, this means includes a spring which is under stress whenv the closure is secured in place and\the stress-reaction of which tends tourge the closure upwardly to eiIect closer embrace betwen the channel and fender edges. 'Ihe means which secures the closure in"place may have associated with it a key-operated lock for preventing its unauthorized operation, or conveniently, the closure may be provided with a separate key-operated lock which prevents its removal.

In the preferred i'orm the shield is held at one end by a iixed arm in position to engage a keeper supported by the fender; and at the other end by a spring lever pivoted at its center and having one arm which engages a fender-supported keeper and a second arm which can be moved to stress the spring and into engagement with a holder on the shield. The closure or shield will thus be held at one lower corner by a rigid arm and at the other lower corner by a spring whose stress reaction tends to urge the closure upwardly.

Other means of securing the closure will be apparent from the drawings and the following description.

The accompanying drawings illustrate my invention:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the rear portion of an automobile, showing a fender with one of my closures in place;

Fig. 2 is a similar side elevation showing the closure in association with a fender and also showing details of a preferred form of mounting the shield;

Fig. 3 is a section view taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2 and showing the sectional shape of the closure;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the left-hand corner of the closure shown in Fig. 2:

Flg. 5 is a section taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4;

Figs. 6, 'I and 8 are Velevations of closures having modiiied forms of locking mechanisms; and

Figs. 9, 10 and 11 are sections taken across the meeting edges of the shield and fender and showing modiiications in which such edges are secured together to hold the shield in place.

While for illustrative purposes the drawings show my shield only in association with a rear fender, it will be clear that similar shields may be mounted on front fenders.

In Fig. 1 ci the drawings I have shown a shield IU associated with a deep skirted fender Il onv the rear portion of an automobile I2. It is to a front wall of double thickness and a bottom and back wall of single thickness, as is shown in Figs. 3 and 5; and the bottom will be spaced inwardly from the extreme edge of the shield. Ihis construction avoids the necessity o! marring the shield surface by securing to it any supplemenvtary'purts at its edges. Desirably. the bottom of .the channel is lined with some soft material such as rubber or felt, to seal the Joint between the shield II and the fender Il and to compensate for any irregularities in the mating edges of such two parts. Y

when the shield is thus provided at its edges with means which prevents its lateral displacementirom the edges of the fender, it may be secured in place by merely holding it against downward movement. Preferably, this is accomplished at one lower corner of the shield by means oi'arigidarm lisecuredtotheshield iland projecting outwardly therefrom into engagement with a fender-supported keeper I1. At the other lower corner of the shield is mounted a U-shaped bracket 2l. and in such bracket is journaled a spring lever. This spring lever is in the i'orm oi a spring bar which is wound intermediate its ends intoacoilll oi'afewturns,sothatthelever conslsts of a handle 2l. the coil 2|, and a latch arm 22. 'Ihe -coil 2| conveniently forms the bearing vby which the spring lever. is Journaled. The latch arm 23 extends outwardly beyond the edges of the shield Il, and has its end bent over to form a latch finger 2l in position to cooperate with a keeper 2l supported by the fender. A handle-retaining bracket 2l is provided at a point spaced from the U-brachet Il'toward the opposite lower corner of the shield Il.

With this arrangement, the fender shield may be inserted in the wheel-exposing opening of the fender by first bringing the arm Il into engagement with its keeper I1; and then. pivoting the shield about their point of contact, the latch finger 24 is brought into engagement with its keeper Il and the handle 2l rotated upwardly in a counterclockwise direction and hooked over the holder It. into the position shown in Figs. 2 to 5 inelusive. Y

Whileinthispreferredformofmyshield,l have shown onlya single spring lever 22-22, a secondspringlever mayreadilybeusedinplace of the xed arm il.

lfthenxedarmandasinglespringareused, the shield may convenientlybelockedin placeto prevent unauthorised removal by providing a key-operated lock Il Just above the-spring lever 22-22 andhavingaboltwhichwhen inlocked positionpassesthmughalinedholesinthefender ment shown at the left in Fig. 6.

`this comprises a boit Il which is longitudinally bead and the channeibottom. 'nils lock is preferabiy oi the cylinder type-and may be operable by the same key as the door, ignition, or sparewheel lock of the-automobile.

If either one or two spring levers are used. it is to be noted that the shield is held upwardly by the stress-reaction of a spring. 'and the channel I ing the spring act directly to support the fender shield. In order to-accomplish this, and at the same time to retain the eiiect of an upward bias on the fender shield. yI may employ the arrange- Essentially.

slidabie in brackets 3l and provided with a wedgeshaped outer end I2. 'nils wedge end engages a fender-supported keeper 88 which has an inclined upper face; and when the bolt Il is in projected or locked position it is urged forwardly by some spring means.` As shown. this spring means comprises a curved leaf. For operating this vsmiling-pressed bolt arrangement I may use a crank 2l Journaled in theshield Ilvand preferably provided on its outer end with a head adapted to be operated by the same tool which will be used to demount a wheel or tire.

v'Ihiscrankhasanarm at theendofwhichis connected one end of the spring 34. Ihe other end of the spring Il is connected to the end of the bolt Il. As shown. the bolt is in locked position and the spring 34 is stressed so that its reaction tends to project'the bolt and also to turn the crank arm Il in a clockwise direction against a stop 3l. 'Io release the bolt-2| the crank arm is turned ln a counter-c1ockwise direction past a dead-center position and around to a point at the right of the crank shaft.

The arrangement which has Just been described maybeusedlnconnectionwithaiixedarmmch as the arm tI shown in Pigs. 2 to 5 inclusive. Or, instead, it may be used in connection with the device shown at the right in Fig. 6. Here a bolt Il is loosely mounted for longitudinal sliding in a single bracket Il onthe shield II. It too has a wedge-shaped end andcooperates with a fender-supported keeper 4I which has an inclined upper surface. The inner end of the bolt ll is curved upwardly into an inverted U-shape andisattaehedtoasecondarmllonthecrank shaft 8l. The crank' arm Il is not spaced diametrically from the crank arm 3l but at an angle of about 150 thereto.

'In its locked position. as shown 1n mg'. e,- the the shield Il, and also on the crank arm 4l tendingtoturnsuchcrankarminaclockwisedirection against the stop It. When this bolt Il is to be unlocked, the 'crank arm Il is turned in a counterclockwise direction. This movement tends to increase the stress on the bolt Il, although the retraction of the wedge-shaped end of the bolt down the inclined surface of the keeper il has a tendency to relieve thestress in the bolt. As the arm Il continues Vits counterelockwise movement past a substantially vertical position. its end moves downwardly to relieve the stress of the bolt Il vanni to pivot the bolt about the bracketlltoralseitsouterend. Inorderto *been described. may be used in association with axed armsuch asthat shown in Figs. 2 to 5 or may be used in the association shown in Hg.

In any securing means which includes a rotatable crank, locking may be eiTected by associating the key-operated lock with the crank.

As is shown in Iilgs. 3 and 5, .the fender edge whichA defines the wheel-exposing opening is rolled into an upwardly opening bead. This bead may be utilized and the'necessity for fendersupported keepers avoided by the arrangement shown in Fig. 7. Here, the shield I0 is providedon its back with two brackets ill through which pass the threaded ends of' a U-shaped rod 5I. The horizontal portion of this,U-shaped rod is onset from the plane of the two vertical portions and is curved to mate with the fender bead. 'Ihe threaded ends of the rods pass through springs 52 and are provided beyond such springs with wing nuts In operation. this form o! shield Il is inserted upwardly into the wheel-exposing opening until the channel edge is brought into embracing engagement with the fenderbead, the generally horizontal portion of the rod il is then brought into engagement with the inside of such bead, and the wing nuts 53 tightened.

In Fig. 8 I have shown a modification of the spring lever of Figs. 2 to 5, in which the handle 22 is bent downwardly and outwardly beneath the lower edge of the shield so as to be accessible from the front of the shield. Instead of the arm holder 26. I provide aA depression 55 in the face of the shield and bend the end of the arm 22 inward to form a finger 56 which is adapted to be received in the depression 55, to hold the arm 22 in locked position.

In Figs. 9 to -ll inclusive, I have shown three methods of securing the shield III in place by clamping its edges to the fender edges. In Fig. 9 the shield-edge is provided with a channel 5I which opens outwardly and forwardly to receive the fender-edge 58. On the back of the shield at spaced points along its edge are brackets 60 through which may be passed bolts 6I. These bolts 6i pass through holes in the fender Il, and are desirably inclined so that upon tightening they exert both forward and upward force-components. Since the shield may be applied as an accessory, I may also provide inlthe ends of the brackets 60 a second hole 63 so that the shield may be used as a template for locating the holes in the fender Ii.

In the modification illustrated in Fig. 10, the fender-bead is in the form of an inwardly extending flange, and the shield near its edge is rolled to form a forwardly opening groove 64 for receiving such fender-bead flange. The cooperation of these parts facilitates insertion of the shield in that the shield may be rested on the ange temporarily while the bolts are inserted.

Outwardly beyond the groove, the shield is provided with extensions by which it may be bolted to the fender, and these extensions may be in the form of a continuous flange 66 substantially coplanar with the body of the shield. At spaced points along this flange, it is provided with bolt holes which are surrounded by conical seats 61; and the fender has mating conical protrusions 68 which also serve as oountersunk seats for the bolt heads 69. The mating conical seats 61 and protrusions 68 resist all relative movement in the 20,857 'permit this raising, trie bracket `u desinslyemthe bolt 'onlyloosely.

plane of the shield. so that the Vbolts need only act in tension-v to h old the two parts together. The joint `may'jbe' sealed, and noise eliminated. by inserting between thejfender wall and the flal'l'e l. of the shield a sealing cushion Il;

To avoid the necessity of drilling holes in the fender, I may use the arrangement shown in Fig.

11. Here again. the shield is provided with means for embracing the fender-edges on oppositesides. In this arrangement, this embrace is effected between a ange lll at' the edge of the shield III and a part 'il which may be either an annular band extending all along the curved edges of the shield I0, or .may be a series of brackets. In either case, the part 'Il may be secured at its inward portion to the shield il and is provided `at its outer portion with a seat 12. Below such seat 'I2 and below the flange I0 of the shield Il there is a spaced series of bolts Il which may be tightened to draw the seat 12 toward the flange 1li. Desirably, in this arrangement, there is interposed between the fender edge and the seat 'I2 and ange 'l0 a soft cushion 'Il to compensate for variations in the parts and to eliminate noises.

It is noted that in the modifications of Figs. 9 to 11 inclusive the nuts for bolts are held in cages 15 mounted on shield-supported parts and which permit slight lateral movement of the nuts so that they are self-alining, but prevent turning of the nuts so that it is unnecessary in mounting the shield to reach up behind it and hold such nuts from turning.

It is to be noted that my fender shield braces and strengthens the fender, in additionKto its advantages in aiding the usual functions of the fender, and decreasing the wind resistance of the automobile. The various modifications of shieldsecuring means all have the advantage of securely holding the parts together without permitting looseness and noise, and yet all provide ready and simple removal and replacement of lthe shield. Since the shield prevents removal of the wheel or tire without previous removal of the shield itself, the key-locking of the shield in place effectively prevents surreptitious removal oi' such wheels and tire as well as of the shield itself.

The provision of edges on the shield which mate with the fender edges and press between themselves a sealing cushion which is continuous over substantially the whole length of the joint effectively seals the fender and shield against the escape of mud or water thrown up by the wheel; and this action is vfurther accomplished by the fastening modifications of Figs. 2 tof 5 and 8, which avoid the necessity for any openings through either the shield or fender.

It will be understood that the insert or closures for wheel-exposing openings may be used to cover the wheels of an automotive vehicle regardless of whether such vehicle has fenders of the present conventional shape. Thus, for instance, as in some busses, the body itself may extend over the wheels to form the fender, and the wheelexposing opening will then be inthe outer wall of such body. Accordingly, where I specify wheel-fenders in the appended claims, I mean to include any upper structure which acts as a wheel-fender, whether in the conventional fender form or in some other form, as where the body forms the fender. Y

The term. accessory" is intended to refer to a fender shield which may form part of the standard equipment of a vehicle or which may be supplied as extra equipment.

Iclaimasmyinvention:

LAnaceessoryi'orawheel-tenderhavinga dependingouterwallinwhichthereisadownwardlyopenwheel-exposing opening.compris ingashieldforclosingsaidopening.ape ripberalwallonsaidshieldadaptedto overlap the opening-deilnlng edge of said fender-wall. means at a plurality oi' points along theperipheryoi.' said shield for underlappingsaid openingdeilning edge' to conilnc said peripheral wall thereagainst.wherebysaldshieldisadaptedto beinsertedbyupwardmovunentthereoi'ithe planeofsaidedge,andmeansforsecuringsaid shield against relative vertical movement with respecttosaidiender.

2. An accessory for a wheel-fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardlyopenwheel-exposingopening,comprising ashieldtorelosingsaidopening.aperipheral wall on said shield adapted to overlap the opening-defining edge of said leider-wall, a second peripheral wall adapted to underlap said edge and cooperatewithsaidiirstperipherslwallto conilne said edge therebetween. whereby said shie d isadaptedtobeinsertedbyupwardmovem t thereciintheplaneoisaidedge-.andmeans for securing said shield against relative vertical movement with rpect to said-fender.

3. An accessory ior a wheel-tender having a depending outer wail in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening. comprising a shield for closing said opening, a peripheral wall on said shield adapted to overlap the opening-dening edge of said lender-wall. means at a plurality of points along the periphery oi said shield for underlapping said opening-denning edge to conne said peripheral wall thereagainst. whereby said shield isadapted to be inserted by upward movement thereof in the plane of the edge, and means for clamping said underlapping means and said peripheral wall together to secure said shield against relative vertical movement with respect to said fender.

4. An accessory ior a wheel-lender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly pm wheel-exposing opening. comprising a shield for closing said opening. a channel on said shield whichopensinadirectionaway from the center ofthe shield, said channel being` shaped to receive the curved opening-denning edge of said lender to prevent relative movement between said edge and said shield in a direction normal to the plane of said edge. and means for vertically positioning said shield with respect to said tender with said channel in embracing engagement with said edge.

5. In combination with a wheel-fender having s depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, a shield for closing said opening. a ilange upstanding from the rear face of said shield in position to present itsouteri'aceinabuttingrelationtotheopenlng-defining edle of said wall. inter-engaging means at a plurality ci' points along the contigu- L sans? and interengaging means in operative position'V withrespecttosaidedge.

'1. An accessory fora wheel fender having a depending outer wall in'which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening. means on said shield adapted by planar movement thereof to interengage said fender-wall at a pluraliw of points about the periphery oi'said opening therein to conilne said shield in substantially the plane of said fender wall. and coacting means acting generally in the direction oi' the plane o! said shie'd and wall i'or verticallyposltioning said shield with respect to said tender.

8. An accessory for a wheel tender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening, anintegral peripheral wall on said shield adapted to overlap the opening defining edge of said fender wall, said wall being formed o! shield material turned vzo backuponitseli'tothebaseoi'suidwalLasec-l ond wall upstanding from said shield, said shield material being tumed inwardly from the base of said peripheral wall toi'orm said upstanding wall, and a iiange at the i'ree edge of said upstanding wall for underlapplng said opening-defining edge to coniine said peripheral wall thereagainst. whereby said shield is adapted to be inserted by upward movement thereof in the plane of said edge, said shield material being turned outwardly to form said ilange, and means for securing said shield against relative vertical movement with respect to said fender.

9. An accessory tor a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield iorcicsing said opening. means on said shield' adapted by planar movement thereof to interengage the edge oi' said fender wall at a plurality of points about the periphery' of said opening therein to connne said shield in substantially the plane ot said fender wall, and coacting means located on the inside oi said shield and acting generally in the direction of the plane of said shield and wall for exerting an upward pressure on said shield and maintaining it in engagement with said edge.

10. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening.vmeans on said shield adapted to interengage the peripheral edge oi' said fender-wall at a plurality of points thereabout to connue the shield in substantially the piane oi' said wall, and means for exerting an upward pressure on saidshield and maintaining it in engagement with said edge.

l1. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly opening wheel exposing opening. comprising a shield for said opening, means on said shield adapted by planar movement of said shield to interengage the edge of said fender wall at a plurality of points about the periphery o! said opening therein to connue said shield in substantially the plane oi' saidfender wall, and a single pairoiangularlyspaceddevicesactinggene'rally in the plane of said shield and wall for exerting an upward pressure on said shield and maintaining it in engagement with said edge.

12. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly opening wheel exposing opening, comprising a shield for said opening, means on said shield adapted by planar movement of said shield to interengage the edge of said fender wall at a plurality of points about the periphery of said opening therein to confine said shield in substantially the plane of said fender wall, and means acting generally radially of said shield and edge `for maintaining said shield in engagement with said edge.

13. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening, means on said shield adapted to interengage the peripheral edge of said fender-wall at a plurality of points thereabout to confine the shield in substantially the plane of said wall, a lug supported on said shield and means supported by said lug for fastening said shield in place.

14. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly opening wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for said opening, means on said shield adapted by planar movement of said shield to interengage the edge of said fender wail at a pluralityof points about the periphery of said opening therein to confine said shield in substantially the plane of said fender wall, a lug supported on said shield and means supported by said lug for fastening said shield in place.

15.. In combination with a wheel-fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening defined by an in-turned edge having an inner surface of considerable width and curved in substantially a single plane, a shield for closing said opening, a wall upstanding from the rear face of said shield providing an outer surface similar in shape to said inner surface, said wall being positioned to present such outer surface in abutting relation to said inner surface, interengaging means at a plurality lof points along the contiguous portions of said in-turned edge and upstanding wall and engageable by upward movement of said shield for preventing relative lateral movement betweeny said edge and wall, and releasable means for securing said shield upwardly with respect to said fender wall to hold said outer wall-face toward said inner edge surface.

16. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outerwali in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening. comprising a shield for closing said opening, means constructed and arranged upon said shield to engage with the edge portion of the fendes wall to produce a coasting relation between the adjacent edge portions of the fender wall and shield forming a substantially continuous surface between the outer faces of the depending fender wall and shield, and means for maintaining the shield in position with respect to the wheel-exposing opening.

17. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening, an integral peripheral wall on said shield adapted to overlap the opening vdening'edge of the fender wall, a flange formed of said shield material and extending inwardly therefrom for enacting relation with the edge portion of the wheel-exposing opening in the fender wall, and means for securing the shield against relative movement with respect to the fender wall.

18. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening, means constructed and arranged upon said shield to engage with and receive the edge portion of the fender wall to confine the shield in substantially the same plane as the wall and to produce a coacting relation between the adjacent edge portions of the fender wall and shield forming a substantially continuous surface between the outer faces of the depending fender wall and shield, and means for maintaining the shield in position with respect to the wheel-exposing opening.

19. vAn accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening, means constructed and arranged upon said shield to engage with and receive the edge portion of the fender wall to confine the shield in substantially the same plane as the wall and to produce a coasting relation between the adjacent edge portions of the fender wall and shield forming a substantially continuous surfacebetween the outer faces of the depending fender wall and shield, means for exerting an upward pressure on the shield and maintaining it in removable engagement with the edge of the wheel-exposing opening of the depending wall of the fender.

20. An accessory for a wheel fender having a depending outer wall in which there is a downwardly open wheel-exposing opening, comprising a shield for closing said opening, the outer 

